


I Wanted To Say "Thank You"

by youtubeimaginationstation



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Army, Combat medic, F/F, Life Saving, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Post-War, RTX, RTX (Rooster Teeth), Sweet, Veterans, War Veteran, thank yous
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-18
Updated: 2017-07-18
Packaged: 2018-12-03 16:44:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11536278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/youtubeimaginationstation/pseuds/youtubeimaginationstation
Summary: Reader insert in a former combat medic but doesn't talk about her experiences in depth. While at a convention with her GF Barbra some vet goes to the reader saying thanks for saving their lives in battle and the whole gang but especially Barb is proud of the reader.





	I Wanted To Say "Thank You"

Your time in the military was not something you normally discussed. It was a part of your past and your deployments had not been pleasant to say the least. Being a combat medic really took years off your life, and when you left the military you had actually left the entire medical part of your life in the past. It brought back too many memories, too many people had died in your presence within a period of four years, and you couldn’t imagine being around that kind of environment ever again. When you got out you went back to school for event management, weird path you knew, but it was pretty much the opposite of what you had been doing but kept you busy enough to keep you from getting distracted by your past. You got set up with a company in Austin, Texas and started working as a planner for conventions. It was awesome, a ton of work, but you met some of the coolest people in the world all with visions and ideas of how their perfect event would go.

Enter Barbara. 

Barbara Dunkelman worked for Rooster Teeth, and when you first met her she was one of the main coordinators for their event RTX. When they transitioned into the Austin convention center they hired you on as their main manager as it was getting too big for her and Gus alone. You worked super closely with her through this and quickly got very close to her. Only friends at the start, and it stayed that way until Rooster Teeth offered you a job as their head event coordinator. Friendship quickly turned to something a little closer than that. The two of you didn’t address it at the beginning, and since they’d hired you at the height of RTX planning there wasn’t much time to really address what exactly was happening there. So at the end of your second RTX she asked you on a date. The two of you had been glued at the hip from that moment forward.

She never pushed you to talk too much about your past unless you were in the mood to talk about it. Barb was thankfully compassionate enough to know that it was still a touchy subject for you even years later. She was the best thing that had happened to you though, she knew how to cheer you up and how to help you relax when work got to be too much since she had been in your position not that long ago. She was your best friend in the world and would also kiss you and hold your hands so that was a pretty dope bonus too. 

It was the weekend of RTX 2017 and you were at the height of your nerves though, this was the first year where Barb and Gus had gone fully hands off, so there was a lot of pressure on you and your small team to make things go without a hitch. You’d done guardian training, had a personal assistant intern following you around, and had a walkie with six exchangeable batteries available so people could get ahold of you at any moment. Despite the stress though you found yourself so happy. RTX was your baby at this point, and now it was time to put your baby out into the world. It was time for the doors to open to the convention floor and your heart was about to jump out of your chest. Barb slid up next to you and wrapped her arms around your waist to spin you around to face her. 

“Hey babe.” She said quietly, resting her forehead on yours. You let out a breath you didn’t realize that you were holding in and she smiled. “There you go. Things look great. Things are going to go great. You’ve worked so hard to make this be kickass and it is absolutely going to be kickass.” She said and you tilted your head enough to reach her lips. It was lovely but short lived as your walkie went off in your ear and you jumped. 

“Everyone ready to go?” someone asked over the headset and you took a shuddering breath. It was time. 

“Yeah, let’s do this shit. Let’s open up the doors, it’s time for fucking RTX!” You exclaimed over the headset and you watched from upstairs as the doors were swung open. The crowd started rushing in, badges fluttering around their necks, but it wasn’t time for you to relax just yet. Barb was still holding you hand, but you had things you needed to do. You planted a kiss on Barb’s lips and winked at her before running off to do your job. 

Barb tracked you down a few hours later as you were sneaking around the convention floor making sure all the booths were doing well. She snagged your arms and pulled you behind one of them to the storage area and pressed a kiss to your lips. 

“Things are going great. Take a break for like ten minutes and walk the floor not as an event manager. You set up a great event, enjoy it!” She said and before you could answer she pulled your walkie off and slipped it on herself for a moment. “Y/N will be back momentarily, she needs to enjoy the event.” She told your crew and you heard a chorus of excited ‘okays’. She grinned and kept your headset around her own neck before leading you back out onto the floor hand in hand. While you had done a ton of the planning for the event you really had not had a chance to experience it. You almost wanted to pat yourself on the back for it, but someone else patted your back instead. You turned around to see a guy who looked like he was in around his late 20s. His arms were covered in tattoos and had a good bit of scruff. Something about him seemed incredibly familiar, and it wasn’t until he started talking that it all rushed back to you. 

“Y/N right? I’m First Lieutenant Zaid Atkins. I know it’s been a few years… you do… do you recognize me?” He asked and you nodded, clutching Barbara’s hand like a vice. She looked concerned, and seemed ready to call over security in a moments notice. “Good good, you… well simple put you saved my life during that deployment. I was bleeding out, and there was no way that I was going to make it with three bullet wounds. But for some reason you did not give up on me, ma’am. I was shipped out before I ever had a chance to say anything, and it seems like the universe gave me my chance today. I saw you and just had to say thank you. I owe you my life. It is an honor to thank the woman who worked so hard to make sure I got to see my fiancé and my family and the rest of my life.” There were tears in both your eyes and you dropped Barbara’s hand to give Zaid a hug. It was tight, and years of unsaid emotions were emanating from him. Barbara, as well as a few other RTX guardians were standing by, many of them emotional from the exchange as well. When you both pulled away he pulled out his phone. “Can I get a picture? This is kind of a big deal to me.” He said and you found you still couldn’t talk, too choked up to really get any words out. Barb swooped in and grabbed the phone, motioning for the two of you to stand closer so she could take it. You knew you must’ve looked like an absolute mess, but you had helped save this man’s life, all that pain back then was worth it for one moment with a vet you’d worked to give a better life. 

Once the picture was taken the two of you exchanged numbers, promising to keep in touch and get to know each other when you weren’t in charge of a convention, and then he disappeared into the crowds of the floor. You didn’t realize you were staring after him until Barb was gently guiding you to one of the behind the scenes areas. You still weren’t sure what to say, but she quickly pulled you against her and you started to sob. All the memories of that man being brought into the infirmary were rolling over you, when he’d been shipped out you weren’t sure if he was going to make it. Removing shrapnel was a dangerous job, and honestly it was a miracle he’d survived. Barbara just held you for a few minutes, whispering sweet affirmations and letting you just cry it all out. When it seemed like there was no other liquids left in your body she took a step back, holding you at arms length. 

“Y/N… I am just… beyond shocked I got to witness that. What an incredible thing you did for him. I am just so so lucky to know you. And Y/N I am so proud of you. More than I can ever express I am so proud.” Barb said, her voice wavering and tears glistening on her cheeks. You wiped them away with your thumb and pulled her in for a kiss. It was a grounding moment, pure and sweet and taking you away from your past and right into your present with her. 

“Thanks dear.” You murmured, once again resting your forehead against hers and just breathing in the moment. There were lots of voices coming through the headset though, and you still had a job to do, so you slipped it from around her neck and back onto your head, kissing her one more time on the forehead. “I gotta go, but I’ll definitely try and slip in for some of the Podcast recording and maybe I’ll crash the RWBY meet and greet too.” You said, clipping the walkie back on and turning to face the black curtains. RTX was calling but now you felt like you could conquer the world.


End file.
